Leverkusen - After a strong start to their UEFA Champions League campaign, Bayer 04 Leverkusen will be looking to secure their position in the top two of Group E as they welcome AS Roma on Tuesday (kick-off 20:45 CEST / 18:45 GMT).

Roger Schmidt's side beat Roma's city rivals SS Lazio in the qualifying round of this season's Champions League, and currently sit second in Group E on three points after two strong performances against FC BATE Borisov and FC Barcelona.

Top Facts

Leverkusen have won four of the seven home games they have played against Italian opposition. Roma have lost 10 of the 12 games they have played on German soil.

Roger Schmidt's side are in fine attacking form, having scored seven goals in their two home games in this season's Champions League campaign.

Roma's Edin Dzeko is a familiar face in Germany. The Croatian spent four years at VfL Wolfsburg, scoring twice in his six appearances against Leverkusen.

Antonio Rüdiger, who moved to Roma in the summer, has never once been part of a winning team against Leverkusen. In his time at VfB Stuttgart, he suffered three defeats and one draw at the hands of the Die Werkself.

The two teams faced each other in the Champions League group stage in the 2004/05 season. Leverkusen beat Roma 3-1, going on to finish top of the group, while Roma finished bottom.

Leverkusen's sporting director Rudi Völler scored 45 goals in his five years as a player at Roma from 1987-1992

In Giulio Donati's only game for previous club Inter Milan, he was substituted off for Maicon, who now plays for Roma.

Kyriakos Papadopoulos will be suspended for one game if he receives a yellow card against Roma.